Why can't I run?

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  • Il_DaniD_lI
    Il_DaniD_lI Posts: 1,593 Member
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    May I draw your attention to point one:
    When you start out, it’s HARD! Even if you think you’re fit, running is so different to anything else you’ve done before you will get out of breath quickly. Stick with it. Can’t manage a minute? Go slow. Still can’t? GO SLOWER!

    Hope it helps! :flowerforyou:

    That's so true. I think the above is an important statement. Running IS hard, for EVERYONE starting out. Don't get discouraged.
  • steph1278
    steph1278 Posts: 483 Member
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    I am a big advocate of the C25K program. I am now in week 8 and can run for 28 minutes straight. My best advice is to start slow. Work on your endurance first and speed will come later. I never thought that I would be able to run when I first started, but I can and it's amazing. Such an awesome feeling! Good luck to you.
  • Weathers58
    Weathers58 Posts: 246 Member
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    You should alternate walking / running until you are able to run consistently....try the C25K program.

    I ran track in h.s., gave it up for a while, then when I went back couldn't run a quarter mile!! A few years later I completed a marathon :)

    You can do it!

    This is good advice. I couldn't run two years ago now I'm sub 8 min miles and about to do a marathon.

    A heart rate monitor can be invaluable. Set it at 80% of your max.

    See a doctor just to check you out before you go and when you reach 80% the monitor bleeps you must stay under this and set off slowly so that you dont get the lethrgy of lactic acid build up.

    Its much much better to start of slow (walk) then jog.

    Always stretch off first

    Just common sense, then combine walking and running. Try to cover 15 or 20 mins doing both

    If you have a monitor you can check your progress and see cals burned etc its also very good to look back on.

    You can do it if you try. You dont learn to run and walk its inherent in our genetics.

    Most importantly don't set yourself unrealistic goals so that you dread going out.

    I dont run on a treadmill for all the reasons above, its not natural and you can't train for a race on a treadmill (not positively sucessfully anyway)

    Good luck and enjoy it. Just get out and try a little you'll get there I was 18 stone and smoked 40 cigs a day 5 years ago.

    Nowe I'm hoping to run sub 4 hours in 3 weeks

    x
  • Dragonfly1996
    Dragonfly1996 Posts: 196 Member
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    Agree with Berry. Start slowly & run / walk. Gradually build up to more minutes running than walking & don't start off too quick as that's so easy to do. Keep at it and it WILL happen - it's hard but your perseverance will pay off!! I started running regularly End of 2009 when I could only run (with a lot of moaning!!) the distance of two lamp posts & last month I ran a marathon!!! I am not a fast runner at all & it doesn't come easy to me!! Good luck it's all possible believe me!!:flowerforyou:
  • kaylz0106
    kaylz0106 Posts: 117 Member
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    Machines are easier. I didn't do the c25k exactly but applied the same principle. I started on Jan 1st and simply did walking I started with 5k atleast 4 times a week one day on one day off but I was over 20lbs and hadn't done any for of exercise in almost 5 years and I mean none at all, hence why I was 200lb. Anyway, Jan I could walk it in just under 70mins, knocked 10 mins of that by the end of feb by power walking, added in a little jogging for March and managed 59mins (I jogged for maybe 10mins at the most), goal for april was to jog for longer 15mins-20mins and get it done in under 45 mins I did it in 42mins and did half of it jogging.

    Slow and steady wins the race....remember that and also telling yourself you can do it and taking pride in the little victories even if you only knock 1min off your best time it still worth savouring becuase you earned it!

    My May goal is to get it done in 35-40 mins and only walk 15 mins the rest jogging.

    Oh and as a note, I ALWAYS to a muscle stretch before leaving the house and 5 min power walk another stretch and then start running if I dont do this routine my legs are like led and I tend to get pains in my feet and shins!

    sorry my reply is so long but I was you 5 months ago and wished that someone had said these little thigns to me....good luck and you can do it!
  • hpurnell0515
    hpurnell0515 Posts: 1 Member
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    Running is much more difficult than the elliptical. So don't fret.

    Most people run way too hard (if you have a HR monitor, try it on the elliptical and then do that same HR running, you will see). Don't try to compare the two.

    When you are starting to run all runs are difficult. Slow down. Maybe right now you can only run 10 seconds and walk 30 seconds. that's fine, your ability will pick up (and you won't hate it) if you take it easy.

    I constantly tell people they need to run at conversational pace. If you can't run and talk/hold a conversation, then you are going to hard. Stop and walk till your breathing and HR settles. then run again. Slower. Trust me. Running takes a long time, but it's super effective and it's awesome.

    I was never a runner. Until I was.

    I think this is excellent advice. I made up my own version of the C25K exercises on the treadmill - just a run/walk pattern that felt right for me - and I've had slow but noticeable results. I started by alternating 2:30 walking/1:30 running for a total of 20 minutes, and after a few weeks I'm now up to 1 minute walking/3 minutes running for a total of 32 minutes. I hope to eventually cut out the walking all together, but if it takes me a year to do that, I'm totally fine with that because I'm seeing increased stamina and the -slightest- little calf muscles taking shape. :) Anyway, great advice, and I'm definitely going to steal your quote: "I was never a runner. Until I was."
  • thomassd1969
    thomassd1969 Posts: 564 Member
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    I used all the excues I have read on here too, " i cant run", I cant get my breath", ' Im just not a runner", I cant make it the whole way", To be perfectly honest with you like I had to myself they are all excues! I know because I used everyone of them. I even used "my boobs are to big" . At heart I wanted to be one of those women on the road at all times of the day rain or shine that could jog miles. See here is the difference jogging is a slower pace then running. I had to learn this the hard way. I was a sprinter in school for 7 years in track I never jogged until now. Its ok to go slow. I really hard trouble with that. I started Couch to 5K at the begining of April and love it. I cant wait to start my routine. I hate the days off inbetween. The feeling of completing the set is amazing. Try this program it really works. Once the excues start you have to make it happen and be accountable. Running a hundred feet then walking is better than not doing it at all. The most important step to becoming a runner is the first one getting started. You can do it!
  • BrianSharpe
    BrianSharpe Posts: 9,248 Member
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    A few years ago I could barely run around the block now a I'm training for a half marathon (my 3rd in about 6 months), if anyone had told me I could do this 5 years ago I would have suggested that they needed psychiatric help.

    It comes down to setting realistic goals and being consistent. I started off by just walking (mostly on the treadmill) then, over time, increased time, speed and incline. Then I started walking outside and adding a minute of painfully slow running for every 10 minutes of walking. The 2 minutes running to 9 minutes walking and so on until I could run 10 min steady with a 1 minute walk break and from there just started adding time to my run intervals.

    You need to get out 3 or 4 times per week and stick to it. Don't beat yourself up if the improvement doesn't come overnight - it takes time. Watch your pace, quite often people try to run too fast which just leads to discouragement and, potentially, injuries.

    You can run, you just need to want it badly enough and progress at your own pace.
  • gatork7
    gatork7 Posts: 22
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    Interesting....I may add the program into my daily routine instead of substituting....
  • dustyhockeymom
    dustyhockeymom Posts: 537 Member
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    I would recommend the Jeff Galloway training program. I tried Couch 2 5K and I couldn't get past week 5, because long runs had me breathing really hard because I have asthma. The Jeff Galloway training program is a run walk method that is not ever designed to get to just running. He recommends even exerperienced runners take walk breaks because it is better for recovery. I think it worked better for me because it didn't have the psychological component for me of building up my running. I now go 7 miles and I am training for a half marathon doing run/walk combos.
  • nickiw68
    nickiw68 Posts: 71
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    This time last year I could barely run (jog) for anything more than about 2 minutes and that was a struggle. I have stuck with it and gradually been able to run for longer.

    Tonight I actually ran for 50 minutes without stopping. Yes, I know it's taken me ages to get to this stage, but I've had issues along the way with a bad back (which turns out to be a problem with my coccyx).

    I am so proud of myself for ever getting this far as I have never, ever been a runner. I would say stick with it, cos it does come eventually
  • dustyhockeymom
    dustyhockeymom Posts: 537 Member
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    Cuz you think you can't! The first bit of every run suuuuuuuucks. I've been running 2-4X a week for more than a year now and the first mile of every single run still suuuuuuuuuucks.

    You're lucky--for me it's the first 2. I actually got irritated with my MIL a while back because she said "oh, yeah, that first 2 always sucks." My irritation was that she never filled me in on that little secret YEARS ago. All the times I tried to make running a regular habit (pre C25k) and even in HS track...I figured if the first 2 miles was miserable, then wouldn't it get worse? But that's not how it worked. That's a big, well-kept secret that I wish more people were made aware of.

    TRUE STORY. 11 minutes is my sweet spot. Once I get past 11 minutes I could go forever. (Ok not quite forever)

    This is me too. I always have to talk myself through the first part of my run and then I get into the flow and I know I got it.
  • Jhuff4
    Jhuff4 Posts: 11 Member
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    So glad I read this. It's been so long since I ran that it physically hurts as things are bouncing in their own rhythm. I will start out with walking and then jogging. Maybe eventually running??
  • BigMech
    BigMech Posts: 420 Member
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    I started out just walking (2, then 3, then 4 miles), then alternating jogging/running for as long as I could, with walking in between, doing that for several miles. Eventually the jogging/running got longer and longer. You are not going to be super fast at first, but that will come as you stick with it.

    I ran my first mile non-stop last April in about 14:00 minutes, which was my first running mile in probably 25+ years. Today during lunch I ran 5.2 miles in 44:31, which works out to 8:37 per mile.

    A heart rate monitor was a big help for me, because you don't want to spike your heart rate too high during the running intervals, or it will be hard to recover.
  • ChristiH4000
    ChristiH4000 Posts: 531 Member
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    I'm on step 4 of C25K, but I've done it all on a treadmill so far. I'm sure I'm in for a surprise when I put it to use on the track or outside.
  • mellabyte
    mellabyte Posts: 193 Member
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    I have this same issue. I notice though, that when I run, I don't get physically tired (my legs are really strong), I just get really out of breath. I feel like if I could just get enough oxygen in, then I'd be able to run longer. (Of course, maybe I'm off base.) So I did a little research on proper breathing while running and am trying to follow these guidelines:

    http://www.articlesbase.com/sports-and-fitness-articles/improve-your-running-with-proper-breathing-45455.html
    http://www.military.com/military-fitness/workouts/breathing-during-exercise

    I have to slow down quite a bit to think about the breath ratio, but I'm hoping it becomes second nature. :) That and perseverance because I know part of it too is that I haven't genuinely started running again until a month and a half ago (I used to play soccer many moons ago). I'm thinking about trying the C25K once I get breathing down. o_o;
  • myfitnessnmhoy
    myfitnessnmhoy Posts: 2,105 Member
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    I spent an entire summer trying to run, and my best 5K was about 22.5 minutes, with me just about ready to die of exhaustion at the end. Mind you, I did it the stupid way - put on cheap sneakers and went out and cramped myself up daily, paid no attention to running nutrition, ran too fast too soon, and generally if there was some wrong way to do ANYTHING that's exactly what I did.

    Lost a good bit of weight that summer, though, and that was my real goal. But if you really want to run a 5K ask me what to do then do whatever is the least like that! :)

    I'm currently training for a 180-mile bike ride event, but once that's under my belt, I might try C25K just to see if I can actually do it.
  • quilteryoyo
    quilteryoyo Posts: 5,999 Member
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    I am trying to become a runner also. I tried the couch to 5K and was a failure. I just couldn't keep up with that program. I think it was more in my head than in any other part of my body. And, at the time, I didn't "realize" I could just keep at the same level for a while until I could master it. :laugh: I found something that works better for me. It is on the Marathon Training academy's website and is what they call building up a running base. I followed it and it helped me overcome my mental block. I was able to run 30 minutes straight on the treadmill at the end...like I was supposed to. But, when I transitioned to outdoors, I was unable to run as far. So, I started the program again, but at what I could comfortably do, which was week 3. I have been outdoors for 6 weeks now and my next run will be running 5 min and walking 1, five times. This is the website: marathontrainingacademy.com/beginner

    Hope this helps.

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